You've Heard The Songs. Now Hear The Stories.

TOLD BY THE DEDICATED COLLABORATORS AND FRIENDS WHO WERE THERE,
WITH MICHAEL JACKSON, CREATING THE MUSIC HE LEFT BEHIND.

These are the stories about the real Michael Jackson...The musical genius at work.

As told by the songwriters, producers, musicians, and technicians who worked intimately with him in the studio, and featuring a touching foreword written by his longtime engineer Matt Forger, Xscape Origins: The Songs and Stories Michael Jackson Left Behind takes you inside the recording studio, delivering captivating fly-on-the-wall insights into the creative process of the greatest artistic visionary the world has ever known.

For the first time—featuring exclusive never-before told stories—Damien Shields puts all the pieces of the puzzle together to reveal how the King of Pop and his collaborators conceived and developed the original versions of:

Compiled fromexclusive interviews with:

MATT FORGER
Engineer, 1982-1997

JOHN BARNES
Composer, arranger, musician, 1983-2009

CORY ROONEY
Songwriter, producer, A&R, 1999-2001

FRED JERKINS III
Songwriter, producer, 1999-2001

BRIAN VIBBERTS
Engineer, 1994-1999

CJ DEVILLAR
Engineer, musician, 1998-1999

and exclusivefirst-hand insights from:

RODNEY JERKINS
Producer, songwriter, 1999-2001

BRAD BUXER
Composer, arranger, musical director, 1989-2008

KATHY WAKEFIELD
Songwriter, 1973-1984

DR. FREEZE
Songwriter, producer, 1998-2001

"Jammed with research..." -Brad Sundberg

Excerpt from the foreword by Matt Forger

"The process for Michael never followed a pattern or formula. Each song was its own special case of exploring an idea, a melody, a groove, a story to tell, or an emotion to communicate. Sometimes he worked alone and allowed 'the song to write itself,' as he often explained, while other times it was a collaborative effort. Sometimes he found an existing song that inspired him, put his performance on it, and made it his own. Regardless of how the process unfolded, the results were always amazing.

Damien Shields has taken on the task of researching some of these songs and the stories behind their creation, and for that I thank him. There are so many lessons to learn from a creative genius like Michael. Just as Michael said, 'Study the greats and become greater,' we are now left to study how he, a poor child from a Midwestern American town, rose to be the most popular entertainer on the planet. These stories are a detailed examination of how some of the songs—unreleased in his lifetime—came into existence."

"Damien Shields delves deep to deliver a collection of untold stories detailing the origins and development of the songs on Xscape. This book is guaranteed to satisfy the intellectual palette of Michael Jackson fans who thirst for more knowledge regarding his genius and creativity."

Michael PrinceEngineer for Micael Jackson, 1995 - 2009

"Xscape Origins is jammed with research! But research alone doesn't tell a story. Rather, Damien Shields provides a wealth of background information while taking the reader on a journey."